5  Zoning in Hampton Roads

5.0.1 Data Collection

Zoning data collection and analysis for the Hampton Roads region took place from April through August 2023. At this time, Gloucester County and the City of Poquoson were going through updates of their zoning ordinances. The findings and presentation of the Hampton Roads portion of the Virginia Zoning Atlas are a point-in-time representation of zoning ordinances during this time. This analysis also includes the Towns of Windsor and Surry. The other towns in the region, Boykins, Branchville, Capron, Claremont, Courtland, Dendron, Ivor, and Newsoms, were not part of this analysis because their zoning map and/or zoning ordinance were unavailable to us.

Zoning and geospatial analysis contributions were made by Christopher Newport University students: Robert Bennett, Stephen Everard, Audrey Morrison, Orson Lange, and Layne Marshall. Eric Mai and Maria Dougherty were the project leads for the region.

It is the intent of the Virginia Zoning Atlas to track major changes to zoning ordinances and zoning maps with periodic updates.

5.0.2 Sponsors

5.1 Key Findings

• Mixed with Residential zoning districts make up a small percentage of zoned land in most jurisdictions and only 3 percent of total developable land in the region.
• Sixty-nine percent of land in Hampton Roads is dedicated to single-family detached only housing zoning districts. In many localities, the percentage is much higher.
• The percent of land that you can build 2+ family housing is but a fraction of total developable land in most localities in Hampton Roads. Newport News (12%), Norfolk (11%), and Williamsburg (9%) stand out among their neighbors, but not by much.

5.2 Zoning’s impact in Hampton Roads

With increasing housing affordability issues across the region, a diverse and growing supply of housing is needed to meet the needs of a diverse population. Localities have significant control over their supply through their zoning ordinances.

The following findings are based on the Zoning Atlas Methodology and takes into account the impact of federally-owned lands and wetland areas, which are both prevalent throughout the region. Like our colleagues in New Hampshire, we have sought to exclude areas of land that are not unbuildable. We have excluded all federal land from calculations, as well as area of wetlands and/or water that are 10 contiguous area or more.

Note

Federal lands were identified using ESRI Landscape’s USA Federal Lands feature layer, which accounted for lands managed by six federal agencies, including:

• Bureau of Land Management
• Department of Defense
• National Park Service
• US Fish and Wildlife Service
• US Forest Service

Wetland/water areas were identified using the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Seamless Wetlands Data. The wetlands polygon was used and allow polygons with an area of 10 acres or more were utilized as a mask layer to clip from our Hampton Roads zoning district layer file.

Overlay districts, which are districts that may change the regulations of a base zoning district, were not a part of this analysis. Few overlay districts in the Hampton Roads region affect the uses of the base zoning district.

5.3 Zoning Ordinances in Hampton Roads

Table 5.1: Summary of zoning ordinances in Hampton Roads

Jurisdiction	County or equivalent	Government Type	Date of Zoning Ordinance	Number of Pages	Number of base and overlay districts
Boykins	Southampton County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
Branchville	Southampton County	Municipality	1982	32	3
Capron	Southampton County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
Chesapeake	Chesapeake	Municipality	1993	620	47
Claremont	Surry County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
Courtland	Southampton County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
Dendron	Surry County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
Franklin (city)	Franklin	Municipality	1994	132	19
Gloucester	Gloucester County	County	2023	154	16
Hampton	Hampton	Municipality	1960	328	57
Isle of Wight	Isle of Wight County	County	2005	468	21
Ivor	Southampton County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
James City	James City County	County	1985	399	19
Newport News	Newport News	Municipality	1997	141	30
Newsoms	Southampton County	Municipality	NA	NA	NA
Norfolk	Norfolk	Municipality	2018	896	96
Poquoson	Poquoson	Municipality	1981	194	17
Portsmouth	Portsmouth	Municipality	2020	160	34
Smithfield	Isle of Wight County	Municipality	1998	499	20
Southampton	Southampton County	County	1990	253	16
Suffolk	Suffolk	Municipality	1999	427	30
Surry	Surry County	County	2013	239	14
Surry (town)	Surry County	Municipality	1981	40	5
Virginia Beach	Virginia Beach	Municipality	1998	348	43
Williamsburg	Williamsburg	Municipality	1991	446	19
Windsor	Isle of Wight County	Municipality	2015	148	11
York	York County	County	1995	251	25

Zoning ordinances see amendments made over the years that eliminate, add, or refine language to better meet the needs of the community. But comprehensive rewrites following a comprehensive planning process can help ensure that zoning regulations align with future land use goals and changing demographics. From the table above, you can see that several localities have updated their zoning ordinances in recent years, while others have not had comprehensive update in decades.

5.4 Type of Zoning District

Figure 5.1: Percent of land zoned by residential category

Roughly 90 percent of developable land is Primarily Residential. This includes prime agricultural land in the southern parts of Hampton Roads, where the preservation of open space and natural resources is a vital part of the region. Only three percent of the region’s developable land is classified as Mixed with Residential. Locally, Williamsburg (22%), York County (14%), and Newport News (13%) have the largest proportions of Mixed with Residential zoning types, while Surry County (0%), Southampton County (0%), and Isle of Wight County (less than 1%) have the least.

Walkable, mixed use communities are increasingly desirable among all age groups. The ability to reach work, shopping, and leisure activities within walking distance supports healthy communities, but also supports diverse local business and job opportunities (think of areas like like Ghent in Norfolk or the ViBe District in Virginia Beach).

5.5 Single-Family Detached Housing

While single-family detached housing is a dream many aspire to, barriers to homeownership are making it difficult for many Hampton Roads residents to purchase a home.The previous section highlighted those challenges with current wages and high rental costs that are further limiting the ability to save for a home purchase. Furthermore, single-family detached only zoning can have major implications on equity and economic opportunity. Allowing for more diverse types of housing in single-family detached only zoning districts can help provide greater access to high opportunity areas for a diverse range of households - both in terms of race and ethnicity, and income.

Figure 5.2: Single-family detached only zoning in Hampton Roads

In most Hampton Roads localities, the majority of developable land is dedicated to single-family detached only. Many of these localities are largely rural localities, where single-family detached housing is more appropriate in rural setting. But even in more urban and suburban areas like Virginia Beach, Hampton, Norfolk, and Newport News, a large proportion of those localities is dedicated to single-family detached only.

Figure 5.3: Percent of developable land dedicated to single-family detached only

5.5.1 Minimum lot sizes

Making generalizations about minimum lot sizes is difficult due to their variations depending on development context. Smaller lot sizes are more reasonable where public water and sewer infrastructure exist, while large lot sizes are more conducive to private well and septic systems. In some cases, smaller lot sizes can be reached by undertaking cluster development techniques that help preserve open space or a planned residential development.

We focused on the lot requirements for single-family detached homes, as many experts have referenced the importance of reducing lot sizes to promote affordability and reduce impacts on the environment.

Note

The following chart focuses on single-family detached only zoning districts.

In order to conduct an analysis with varying minimum lot requirements depending on district context (i.e. connection to public water and sewer, or requirements dependent on predominant lot size), we captured the minimum and maximum value listed. For example, a locality may require a minimum lot area of 0.69 acres if not connected to public infrastructure, but would require a minimum lot area of 0.23 if connected. Therefore, we collected the minimum value (0.23 acres) and the maximum value (0.69 acres). We then averaged the minimum value and the maximum value within each jurisdiction.

This provides a general range of the minimum lot area required for housing in single-family detached only zoning districts.

Figure 5.4: Average minimum lot area requirements in single-family detached only districts

5.6 By-Right Housing

When housing development requires a public hearing process, it can often come up against opposition from existing community members who have a preconceived notions about the impacts of increased density or new neighbors. The entitlement process, whether through a special use permit (or conditional use permit), variance, or rezoning can increase development costs and lead to project uncertainty. At a time when new housing is needed across the region, allowing for housing by-right (without a public hearing process) can streamline development and ensure that the housing supply is aligned with the demand.

Table 5.2: Percent of developable land that welcomes housing type by-right

Jurisdiction	Single-family	2-family	3-family	4+-family
Chesapeake	79%	4%	4%	4%
Franklin (city)	84%	13%	1%	1%
Gloucester	97%	0%	0%	0%
Hampton	85%	7%	1%	1%
Isle of Wight	97%	1%	0%	0%
James City	65%	1%	1%	1%
Newport News	59%	12%	16%	17%
Norfolk	56%	12%	22%	23%
Poquoson	88%	1%	1%	1%
Portsmouth	70%	16%	16%	1%
Smithfield	89%	0%	3%	3%
Southampton	98%	0%	0%	0%
Suffolk	88%	2%	1%	1%
Surry	100%	0%	0%	0%
Surry (town)	93%	1%	1%	1%
Virginia Beach	81%	11%	6%	6%
Williamsburg	63%	13%	10%	10%
Windsor	90%	3%	3%	3%
York	79%	1%	1%	1%

Overwhelmingly, single-family is welcomed (without a public hearing) in nearly every locality by a wide margin, while 2+ family housing is only allowed by-right by less than seven percent in most localities. Areas like Newport News, Norfolk, and Williamsburg stand out as allowing much more than their neighbors. Portsmouth is notable for its allowance of duplexes and triplexes. But overall, only about two percent of developable land in Hampton Roads allows for 2+ family housing by-right.

Figure 5.5: Percent of developable land allowing for 2+ family housing by-right

The map below shows the location of zoning districts that allow for 2+ family by-right.

Figure 5.6: Developable land zoned for 2+ family housing by-right

5.7 Other Requirements

In Hampton Roads, the additional regulations that localities place on different types of housing vary greatly. It is difficult to make one-to-one comparisons with specific requirements like minimum lot size, setbacks, and lot coverage, even with the National Zoning Atlas Methodology.

5.8 Accessory Dwelling Units

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) have been a growing interest among homeowners as they look for ways to increase income, house a family member with special needs, or simply make their home more functional for their family.

Danger

Remember that the National Zoning Atlas Methodology includes caretaker or watchman’s quarters associated with a nonresidential use. It also includes a single dwelling above a commercial or retail use.

Figure 5.7: Percent of developable land that allows for ADUs by-right

Many localities across Hampton Roads address ADUs in their zoning ordinances, while a few (the Town of Surry, Chesapeake and Newport News) make no mention of them at all. It is also important to note that while localities may be generous with the allowance of ADUs, others place additional restrictions on how they can be used.

Jurisdiction	Attached Allowed	Detached Allowed	Owner Occupancy Requirement	Rental Prohibited	Elderly or Family Requirement	Administrative Permit
Chesapeake	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Franklin (city)	Not mentioned	Allowed	Yes	No	No	No
Gloucester	Allowed	Allowed	No	No	No	No
Hampton	Not mentioned	Allowed	Yes	No	No	No
Isle of Wight	Allowed	Allowed	Yes	No	No	No
James City County	Allowed	Allowed	Yes, for detached	No	No	No
Newport News	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Norfolk	Allowed	Allowed	Yes	No	No	No
Poquoson city	Allowed	Allowed	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Portsmouth	Allowed	Allowed	No	No	No	No
Smithfield	Allowed	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Southampton	Allowed	Allowed	Yes	No	No	No
Suffolk	Allowed	Allowed	No	No	No	Yes
Surry	Allowed	Dependent on district	No	No	No	No
Surry (town)	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Virginia Beach	Allowed	Allowed*	Yes*	No	Yes*	Yes*
Williamsburg	Allowed	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Windsor	Allowed	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
York	Allowed	Allowed	Yes	Yes	Yes	No

Figure 5.8: Summary of ADU regulations in Hampton Roads

The City of Virginia Beach is notable because it has two different instances of ADUs in its zoning ordinance: Flex Suites and ancillary single-family dwellings.

5.9 Access to Transit

Access to frequent and efficient public transportation can help entire regions reduce congestion, improve access to job opportunities, and make for more vibrant communities. By building diverse types of housing along transit lines, localities can better connect residents to opportunity and foster less of a reliance on personal vehicle travel.

Transit oriented development (TOD) maximizes a mix of land uses within walking distance of public transit. Sustainable growth strategies, like TOD, are already utilized in Norfolk, as well as in Chesapeake, with their Transportation Corridor Overlay District (TCOD).

The following map shows zoned land that allows for 2+ family housing by-right in Hampton Roads with the location of Hampton Roads Transit bus stops. A quarter mile buffer, which is typically the minimum distance people will walk to a transit stop, are included.

Figure 5.9: Hampton Roads Transit bus stops and zoned land allowing for 2+ family housing by-right

This map shows that many 2+ housing options are made available within bus stops, but there are still opportunities to increase transit access throughout the region by upzoning in strategic areas and/or expanding transit service.

5.10 Affordable housing need

Housing affordability is important to households at all income-levels. But for low-wage workers, affordable housing can prevent housing instability in times of personal or economic crisis. Housing at higher densities often faces opposition from existing residents due to misconceptions about its impact on their community. The public approval process often prevents this type of housing from being constructed, especially affordable housing, in places where low-income households need it the most.

The map below shows Census Block Groups where more the jobs-housing fit ratio is greater than 2.0 (i.e. where there are more than two low-wage workers for every unit of affordable rental housing). And it shows where 4+ family housing can be built by-right.

Figure 5.10: Zoning districts allowing for 4+ family by-right and Census Block Groups with a Jobs-Housing Fit above 2.0

There are many areas of the region where 4+ family must go through the public approval process, particularly in areas where it is needed the most. With housing cost burden a growing issue for renters in the region,